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To be honest, I am not the biggest bloody mary fan. I know, I know, they are awesome & amazing, but they aren’t my first choice…until now! Thanks to Laurel’s delicious little twist, this cocktail might be worthy a try! – xoxo, LK

Bloody Mary lovers everywhere, forgive me…I have never been one of your tribe. It’s nearly impossible to figure out why–first of all, let me state that I LOVE brunch, and the Bloody Mary is a brunch superstar. I love tomatoes. I love spicy things. I’m even into the weirder, more esoteric ingredients you don’t see a lot outside of a good Bloody, like celery salt and Worcestershire sauce. But for crying out loud, put a tall glass of spicy-salty-tomato-vodka juice in front of me, and I’m like……meh. It’s a real problem, I’m working through it.

I started having daydreams about a beverage that would take the cool, sugary pink juice of a watermelon and add the zesty kick of fresh lime juice, just a hint of salt, and the surprise spiciness of a fresh pepper. Then it hit me…if you added a splash of vodka and a garnish to this, it would basically be a Bloody Mary. In the name of overcoming my Bloody-phobia, I mixed one up (for science!) and tried it. Then tried it again. Sweet, bright and smooth with no canned tomato flavor or limp celery in sight…I loved this pink beauty instantly! Sold. Cheers to my–and your–new favorite late summer brunch drink the Watermelon Bloody Mary!

HAPPY FRIDAY! Constance here! For some reason I can’t seem to shake Jennifer Grey’s line from Dirty Dancing–it’s been in my head all week, and I haven’t watched that movie in years. The more I think about it though, what better way to crash a good summer party? ‘I carried a watermelon…’ Who wouldn’t be friends with the gal who brought the watermelon?

Cocktails + watermelon + friends + sunshine. What more do you need for a good summer? And summer is officially here, friends…..or at least it is for us desert dwellers. It hit 115 here this week, and literally the ONLY thing that sounds even somewhat appealing to me for dinner is, you guessed it, watermelon. In true LaurenKelp.com tradition, we’re throwing a little dinner shindig tonight, and I was in desperate need to find an easy, not super sweet, minimal effort cocktail for the masses. Mission accomplished with this watermelon champagne. Don’t believe me? Go ahead and scroll down to the ‘Instructions’ portion of the post…

In our home, we’re firm believers in celebrating regularly. What do we celebrate on a regular basis? Tacos. With about 95% of the population. But hey, there’s a reason everyone’s doing it. If you haven’t jumped on this train yet, we highly suggest you do it…..and soon!

So, as you can tell, this post isn’t about the next best taco recipe, but about it the cocktail that was made for tacos. All hail the margarita! After a long term relationship with the jalapeno & cucumber version, my husband so kindly suggested that we mix things up a bit. And what better way to ring in summer than by adding a little watermelon to everything! This Watermelon Margarita is new favorite of ours & is so light and refreshing. PLUS! it pairs perfectly with grilled Mahi-Mahi tacos with pineapple salsa (recipe coming soon!).

INGREDIENTS:

-3/4 oz. fresh watermelon juice

-1/2 oz. fresh lime juice

-2 oz. tequila

-3/4 oz. Cointreau

-1/4 oz. agave nectar

-cocktail salt for rim if desired

-lime wheel to garnish

INSTRUCTIONS:

-Rim a cocktail glass or margarita glass with salt and place in the freezer to chill.